Thief headbutts, robs store customer

IMPERIAL BEACH  A man was arrested early Wednesday after thefts outside two Imperial Beach convenience stores, including one where a customer was headbutted.

Deputies were first called to a 7-Eleven store on Palm Avenue near Carolina Street about 11:30 p.m. Tuesday, where the thief was arguing with several customers outside the store, sheriff’s Sgt. Fred Magaña said.

He attacked one man, ripped off his watch and stole his cigarettes before getting into a car and driving off. The victim wrote down the license plate of the man’s car and reported it to authorities, Magaña said.

About an hour later and a few blocks away, a clerk at another 7-Eleven store on Palm Avenue reported that a man outside the store was bothering a homeless person. The man then stole two cases of bottled water from an outside display and drove off. The clerk also wrote down the plate and reported it to authorities.

A short time later, a San Diego police sergeant spotted the car in a closed park on Coronado Avenue at Beyer Boulevard in Otay Mesa and took the man into custody. He was booked into jail on several charges including robbery, battery, burglary and being under the influence of a controlled substance, Magaña said.